Three Well-Known Books On Writing Every Writer Should Read

Add Them To Your TBR If You Haven’t Already

Bird By Bird by Anne Lamott

As the title suggests, Bird By Bird simply means to take it one thing at a time.

This is what the book by Anne Lamott tries to make us understand.

Bird By Bird is a step-by-step guide on what it is to be a writer and write. This book is warm and funny. It encourages and inspires. It teaches you to be kind with yourself and your craft.

This book teaches you how to get started with your writing. It teaches you how to get over shitty first drafts and how not to fall for perfectionism.

This book teaches how to create a writing frame of mind that enhances your writing life.

This book will let you know that though Writing is a lonely job, you don’t have to be alone. You need to just surround yourself with the right support system.

This book will make you realise that getting a book published is not the point.

Then what is the point, you ask?

You’ll have to read Bird By Bird by Anne Lamott to find the answer.

One of the wittiest, entertaining, insightful, helpful and close-to-reality books on writing I have ever read.

Quotes from the book that caught my attention -

“You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories. If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better.”

“Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere.”

“The problem is acceptance, which is something we’re taught not to do. We’re taught to improve uncomfortable situations, to change things, alleviate unpleasant feelings. But if you accept the reality that you have been given- that you are not in a productive creative period- you free yourself to begin filling up again.”

Writing Down The Bones by Natalie Goldberg

Writing Down The Bones is a book of encouragement for all writers.

According to the author, Writing is just like any other Zen practice. Writing is an act that helps a writer understand life and its value.

It is about taking that plunge. It is about going with the flow. It is about listening deeply.

And then you write it all out and share it with the world.

Insightful, humorous, and practical, Writing Down The Bones by Natalie Goldberg is a gem for all writers.

Quotes from the book that caught my attention -

“I don’t think everyone wants to create the great American novel, but we all have a dream of telling our stories-of realizing what we think, feel, and see before we die. Writing is a path to meet ourselves and become intimate.”

“Writing is the act of discovery.”

“Writers are great lovers. They fall in love with other writers. That’s how they learn to write. They take on a writer, read everything by him or her, read it over again until they understand how the writer moves, pauses, and sees. That’s what being a lover is: stepping out of yourself, stepping into someone else’s skin.”

On Writing by Stephen King

On Writing by Stephen King is both — a biography of the writer and a guide for writers.

From the biography, you’ll learn how the boy Stephen became the Stephen King we now know of. How his memories, experiences and childhood influenced his writing.

From the guide, you’ll learn about the Toolbox — the basic tools of the craft of Writing which the author believes every writer should possess.

Whether you have ever read a King novel or not, if you are a writer trying to understand the craft On Writing by Stephen King is a must-read for you.

Quotes from the book that caught my attention -

“You can, you should, and if you’re brave enough to start, you will.”

“In many cases when a reader puts a story aside because it ‘got boring,’ the boredom arose because the writer grew enchanted with his powers of description and lost sight of his priority, which is to keep the ball rolling.”

“If you intend to write as truthfully as you can, your days as a member of polite society are numbered.”